Issue No.23 AUSTRALIAN MODEL NEWS August 2013 Contents From the Editor In a gesture of neighbourly friendship the Nepean club 3. HENSCHEL HS 123-1 recently invited the members of the nearby Western- port club to visit their field for a day of flying and social 4. FREE FLIGHT interaction. (see pp.12,13), SCALE MASTERS 2013 This is something of a rarity these days with most modellers not venturing from their home field and 6. BOB PEARCE’S clubs not being particularly inviting to MAAA members HAWKER HART other than their own, an insular aspect of modelling that is isolating it’s own people. Together with the rise 8. DAVID KERR AND THE BENDIGO of numerous SIG’s and the fragmentation of the Na- COMMEMORATIVE MOTOR tionals there are now very few occasions when model- lers have the opportunity to mingle with fellow enthusi- 9. UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES asts of all modelling pursuits. AND THE GRUMMAN X-47B In my home state of Victoria a few events such as the VMAA Trophy, the OS Engines Fly-in and the NFG 10. CLASSIC AEROBATICS “Twins and More” attract attention from a wider group AT YARRA VALLEY but, in general, to meet with other modellers you now have to attend a competition held by a SIG where you 12. SUNDAY FLYING AT NEPEAN see only those who have a competitive interest in that aspect of modelling and comprise only a small per- 14. VICSCALE TROPHY 2013 centage of the modellers interested in that area of our hobby. 17. KEN OSBORNE’S Coupled with this, rather than take part in the activities ROBBINS AND PORTER at a SIG event, there appears to be a growing determi- MONOPLANE nation by clubs to ignore the event but to extract a fee for the use of the field. Hardly conducive to fellowship 18. SCALE AT WARRINGAH RCS and the expansion of our hobby. 20. DAVID BALFOUR’S A few more open flying days on the calendar might BOEING 40C help to reverse the trend ! 21. 50% WAKEFIELDS AT DONVALE John Lamont. 22. NEW ZEALAND MODELLING ERNIE THOMPSON’S SPITFIRE This newsletter is published bi-monthly to feature scale model building and flying together with other modelling 24. RICHMOND SCALE RALLY 2013 events in Australia. 66TH NATIONALS FREE FLIGHT SCALE AND SCRAMBLE. Contributing material and requests for inclusion on the distribution list may be forwarded to — 26. VICTORIAN FREE FLIGHT SCALE CHAMPIONSHIP 2013 John Lamont Unit 5, 1326 Main Road, Eltham, 3095 28. 66TH NATIONALS R/C SCALE Ph: 03 9431 0044 E-mail: [email protected] INFORMATION 31. THE POLIKARPOV’S OF THE ALPINE FIGHTER COLLECTION On the Cover. Barrie Reaby’s RV4 flying at Nepean after a major rebuild and demonstrating that, with a bit of skill and determination, ARF’s can be restored after a crash. page 2 Australian Model News Barry Kilpatrick of the Twin Cities club is at it again. No sooner has he completed the Persian Fury than he has another project on the way although this time it is not quite so much a build as a Barry Kilpatrick’s restoration. The aircraft in question is a Henschel Hs 123. The unfinished and un-flown model was built by the late Lloyd Dipple from Sydney. Lloyd was a master builder of large scale models and the Henschel is a magnificent example of his skills. The aircraft is almost completely covered with litho plate to simu- HENSCHEL late the metal construction and is very highly detailed, both in- side and out. The model is rather heavy due to the extensive detail work (the working undercarriage is an amazing piece of model engineering) and Barry intends to lighten the model with- out diminishing any of the detail. HS 123-1 The aircraft is built to ¼ scale with a wing span of 2.3 metres and a petrol engine is planned to power the finished model, providing it can be fitted into the opening engine cowl. David Balfour. Australian Model News page 3 FREE FLIGHT SCALE MASTERS 2013 (Gary Sunderland) A good crowd of free flight modellers from South Aus- tralia and Victoria gathered at the annual Scale Mas- ters event near Murray Bridge in May. Flying stated at dawn each day and the girls in the catering tent profid- ed hot breakfasts and lunches to fuel the hungry fly- ers. As usual the ace scale flyer, Dave Putterill, turned up with another of his fantastic scale models, this time a three (electric) motor Austrian Aviatik “Grössflugzeug” of 1917 vintage. A masterpiece of workmanship and complexity this model should have won easily, but a first test flight at dawn showed a need for more side- thrust. This could not be fixed on the field so Dave was reduced to flying his six motor Blohm and Voss flying boat which had won in previous years. A challenger from Victoria was Gary Odgers with an- other rare Austrian aeroplane, a one eighth scale Phoenix D.I powered by a 2.5cc diesel engine. Gary flew this model in the 2011 British Nationals. After Gary’s Sopwith Triplane, “Model of the Meet” winner. flying early Saturday the Phoenix flipped over on land- ing and damaged the fin, which put him out of the scale competition. Another interesting and rare subject was an electric powered Hinkler “Ibis” flying boat. A full size replica of the Ïbis”is on display at the Hinkler Museum in Queensland. Not quite the last scale model flying, my Sopwith Tri- plane nevertheless managed to make many good flights over the two days, to be chosen by all tcompeti- tors as the “Model of the Meet”. Powered by a PAW 1.5cc diesel and to one eighth scale the model has a good rate of climb but a steep glide which made for many flights. Good enough to keep the trophy for twelve months anyway. Gary Odgers was awarded a prize by the organiser, dave Putterill, for his many smooth flights with his “Black Magic” sports model over the two days. Many scale and sports models flew all day Saturday and Sunday morning until the wind came up at lunchtime Breakfast at the flying field. to cease proceedings. We all had an excellent time and plan to meet again in 2014. page 4 Australian Model News Dave Putterill with his Aviatik “Grossflugzeug”. Gary Odgers receives his award from Dave Putterill. Electric powered Hinkler “Ibis” flying boat. Gary Odgers with his Phoenix D.I. Australian Model News page 5 Bob Pearce’s Hawker Hart My model’s story. The Model. The model replicates the RAF Hawker Hart J9941 (formerly Wingspan: 1880mm (74 inches) G-ABMR) No. 57 (Bomber) Squadron, now hanging in the RAF Weight: 5.5kg Hendon Museum, London. Motor: Thunder Tiger Pro 91 two stroke I purchased the model, partly constructed, from Ivan Watkins of From my investigation into the model I discovered that it was based the Manning Model Aero Club, Wingham NSW. on the RCMB Plans Service design by David Smith. As can be seen from the photo of Keith’s model it did not have the forward nose sec- The original part of the model was constructed by Keith Freeman tion. who was deceased when I purchased the model. Ivan was a friend of Keith’s and gained possession of the model from Keith’s I completed the nose, undercarriage, wing struts, cabanes and tail- widow. plane supports and added a lot more detail. The original covering was removed and the model was recovered with koverall and painted with auto acrylic as per the RAF Museum photographs. A new set of decals were also added. As I am unable to use the model in “builder of the model” competition I have installed a Thunder Tiger Pro91 two stroke which doesn’t fit totally in the cowl. The maiden flight was flown by Dean Erby, President of the Manning MAC, and a video showing this traumatic flight can be seen at http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=FixrcwSDs14 The prototype aircraft on display in the UK. The model as built by Keith Freeman and purchased by Bob Pearce. page 6 Australian Model News Australian Model News page 7 David Kerr and the Bendigo Commemorative Motor I have a number of aeromodeller Throughout his life David has had friends with whom I regularly con- an interest in aircraft and has verse via Skype. Just recently been involved in aeromodelling John Moody, who resides in Tas- since childhood. He served as mania, called to ask if I could help secretary at GMAC for many with information regarding an years and still devotes a lot of his engine that previously belonged to time to teaching aeromodelling to former MAAA secretary, Chris children at local schools and scout Greenwood, and has now passed groups. In acknowledgement of into the keeping of his brother Jim this and other community work Greenwood who lives in Towns- David received an Australia Day ville. John’s question was whether Award in 2011. I knew of the 5cc. Bendigo Com- memorative Motor and its maker, Manufacture of the Bendigo Com- David Kerr. A photograph of David’s Bendigo Commemorative Motor from 1990/91. memorative Motor was entirely David’s idea and he started out I had no knowledge of the motor with the intention of making fifteen but in my Greensborough Model units using a standard lathe and a Aircraft Club we have a David vertical mill. Based loosely around Kerr who I knew to be a gunsmith the specifications of the FROG and this seemed to fit into the 500 each of the 5cc.